The Hunter's Bite
by booksmartme
Summary: The wolves are a little two late, Laurent bites Bella before the wolves reach the clearing. While hunting, she finds some strange creatures. Bella joins their coven, although not by choice. You see, Elaina has a gift of her own.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer:I don't own this. Stephenie Meyer does.

Chapter One

I tensed for the spring, my eyes squinting as I cringed away. I saw him leap towards me and I inserted one last thought. _I love you Edward_. And then I closed my eyes.

I was ready for it when I felt his teeth sink into my neck. I could feel the blood leaving body and I slowly started to fade away. Suddenly, I felt his jaws leave my throat. I snapped my eyes open to see Laurent being chased by HUGE wolves.

That was all I registered before I felt a horrible, burning pain. A scream echoed through the meadow. I realized it was mine. I started to writhe in pain and I screamed in agony.

" STOP! MAKE IT STOP!" I screamed. I remembered the last time this had happened. _He_ had been there to save me, but not this time.

Imagine someone carving out each and every one of your organs with a dull butter knife. Then, intensify that by a million. Even then you wouldn't even be able to _begin_ to comprehend what it felt like.

It seemed to last forever, the burning and screaming. First it was hours, then it was days, then it was years, and then it was centuries. A century's worth of pain was wracking through my body. I thought of things to do to keep my mind off the pain but it was like a part of my brain was keeping tabs of the burning.

I opened my eyes just because and things started to slowly look clearer. A strong wave of fire went through my body as if it didn't like the scenery so I closed them and tried not to scream. I heard my breath gasping through my teeth and tried counting. It seemed to help a teensy-tiny bit, I wasn't bored anymore.

I opened my eyes again and started to count other things. I counted how many birds flew by, how many trees I could see, how many clouds passed overhead, and many more. I sorted throught the information in my brain, counting things again, but by fives, then tens, and so on. After that, I didn't have anything else to count so I counted my heartbeats. They kept increasing in tempo until they sounded like a hummingbird's wings.

And then a change happened. The fire started to leave my toes and fingers, but it started to gather at my heart. The fire got hotter, as if that was even possible. Then my heartbeat took off like a helicopter. And the fire got oh so hot. It reached a crescendo and then, two things happened simultaneously. My heart stopped and the burning retreated to a dull ache in my throat.

I opened my eyes in amazement. Everything was so _clear_. I tried to remember what the meadow looked like when I was human, but it was like squinting through mud. I could see every single detail. Every separate hair on a fuzzy caterpillar that was on a leaf a mile away.

Just then, the sunlight broke through the clouds. My skin started to sparkle like diamonds. I gasped in amazement. I laughed and then stopped to wonder at it's bell-like sound.

" Amazing!" I murmured in my musical voice. I was spinning in circles, laughing and basking in the sun when I remembered. I sank gracefully to the ground.

So this was how I got my wish, I thought bitterly. But what is it without _him_! What would my life be without him at my side every moment possible. I clawed at the the ground and threw my head back.

" Why!" I screamed pointlessly. "Why did you leave me!"

I felt icy drops falling on my skin at one point and looked up to see black thunderheads rolling in, sealing in the meadow like a coffin. I took off my jacket and tore it up a bit and then rubbed a little leftover blood on it. I needed Charlie to think I was dead, by those wolves maybe. I was lucky they hadn't found me already, I'd been missing for about three days. I walked over to where their prints are. I studied them and then hand-made a path of wolves over to my "death-site". I placed the jacket where the paw-print copies ended and made a trail heading back to the original. I ran out of the meadow without a backward glance.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Don't own this, Meyer does.

Chapter Two

About thirty minutes later, the dry throb in my throat became a parched and demanding burning. I had to hunt. I remembered _their_ style of hunting. I didn't want to be a murderer, a monster, but if I didn't smell an animal soon, I was going to have to find a stray hiker.

I closed my eyes and concentrated. A slight breeze played with my hair, I sighed, it felt so nice. _Concentrate_, I sternly told myself, _you're on the hunt_. I extended out my senses, sniffing the air, listening with my ears. I heard a deliciously moist thudding over to my right about nine miles. My throat flared up like pulling the cord on a hot air balloon. It's aroma was so appealing I had no choice but to hunt it. I ran straight towards it and was there in thirty seconds. I jumped into a tree and studied my prey. With a shock, I realized it was a human. I shook my head vigorously, just my luck. The breeze threw the humans scent straight into my face as if it was encouraging me. I snarled. It was a dangerous and feral sound and all of the animals froze. I pounced down from the tree and stalked towards where the human was sleeping in a tent. I softly unzipped the tent door.

I saw the human. It was a girl about fourteen sleeping in a sleeping bag, her wild black hair splayed over the pillow. She had creamy pale skin and I could see exactly where to put my mouth to get the best blood flow. She turned over in her sleep and murmured something, but I was too far gone in my thirst to notice what she said. I was preparing to bite when she sat up and her eyes snapped open. I reeled back, shocked. They were large, round, and gold, framed with long black lashes.

But I had checked, she was human. _Think Bella, maybe she wears contacts. _The thought made me laugh quietly, remembering something I said to _him_ before I new his secret. The girl shivered, bringing my eyes back to her.

" Austin?" she ask quietly. Her voice trembled as if she was scared. It sounded like a wind chime in a slight breeze. She saw me, probably a dark shape in the corner of her tent to her. She backed up into the corner opposite me and sank deeper into the sleeping bag as if that would protect her.

" Who's there?" She whispered, definitely scared. Her eyes caught the open tent door and they widened. She reached for something beside her and flicked on a switch. Bright light flooded the tent. Crap. She saw me and opened up her mouth to scream, but I darted to her and put my hand over her mouth.

" If I take my hand off your mouth, will you scream?" I asked. She nodded her head. I sighed, at least she was being honest. But this was going to be difficult.

" I am going to take my hand off your mouth. If you scream, I will smash in your windpipe. Got it?" I asked. She nodded her head again, eyes even wider. I took my hand off her mouth.

" You don't really want to hurt me. You just want to go and hunt animals. You were only curious." She said hastily in her high clear voice. I found myself nodding along with her story. Of course I wouldn't want to hurt her, she was so young and sweet and innocent. She still had a life to live. What? What was I thinking? Is she messing with my head?

I felt a cool hand grip my throat from behind. There was no pulse, no heartbeat coming from whomever it was. This one _was_ a vampire.

" You are not going to touch her. Get out of here. You are not wanted." His last sentence struck true. It felt like a sucker-punch to my human gut. I saw the girl move. She stood up and ran to the boy behind me.

" Austin, she wasn't going to hurt me, I had it under control." I agreed with her. I wouldn't hurt her, and she was right, I wouldn't be able to even if I wanted to. Because she had it under control. Austin grunted and released my neck. I shook my head, _don't listen to her Bella_. I felt the girl put her hand on my bare hand. It was really hot. I felt a flash of concern. Did she have a fever? I felt the pulse in her hand and I remembered my forgotten thirst.

" Careful Elaina" Austin warned. She ignored him. She looked me in the eyes and I felt like she was staring into my soul.

" Forget your thirst right now, you can hunt some mountain lion with us later. Right now, you want to answer some questions. And remember, you don't want to hurt me." I felt myself believing her with my mind and dead heart. I was feeling overwhelmed.

" Careful Lanie, don't over-do it." He said. She glared in his direction. She glanced at me and started again.

" Who are you?" she asked.

" Isabella Swan, but call me Bella." I answered, trying to please her. She shared a surprised glance with Austin and he moved in beside her to get a better look at my face.

He had sandy colored hair and evergreen eyes. I felt surprised but came up with a rational explanation. Contacts. His nose was perfectly straight and his skin was olive-toned. This surprised me even more and I failed to come up with an explanation for that one.

" The one declared dead?" She asked. I nodded.

" Are you a vampire?"

" Yes. What else would I be, human?" I scoffed. She grabbed my hand and pulled me up. Still holding my hand she asked another question.

" Who created you?"

" A vampire named Laurent. He was hunting and I stumbled across him. I've always had bad luck." I said.

" How did you figure out you were a vampire." I looked down. I didn't want to betray _him_ but she was so compelling. Maybe I could tell part of the truth. Keeping my eyes down I said,

" I know some vampires." She lifted up my head.

" Is that it?" she asked softly. I darted my eyes to the left and nodded my head. I could see sympathy in her eyes.

" Why aren't you with them?" she asked, confused.

" They ...left." I said, my voice breaking. Her eyes hardened with understanding.

" Do you want to be in our coven. You can travel with us and hunt with us. Make a new family." I nodded hopefully.

" Elaina." Austin said warningly.

" Not now Austin." snapped at him.

" Come on." she said "Let's hunt."


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own this, Steph M. does.

Chapter Three

I looked at Austin and sighed, it was going to take a while for him to trust me. He always guarded her while she slept. Elaina, though, we were best friends. She was wonderful and she reminded me of Alice. I laid down and looked at the sky. It was turning rosy and the stars were starting to fade a little.

" I'm going for a walk." I called to Austin. I got up and ran to a lake I had found about twenty miles north. I jumped into the water and it jolted my mind out of the fog that had surrounded it. I shook my now clear head. I hated it when people messed with it.

I swam around for a while, procrastinating my return trip. I wondered what Austin and Elaina were. I _thought_ that Austin was a vampire but his eyes really were green and his skin was definitely not white. And Elaina. She had pale skin, but it was like my skin when I was human. And she had a heartbeat, but her eyes were gold. I don't think that any humans had gold eyes. Well they are definitely not human, but I don't think they're vampires either.

Austin didn't have a heartbeat but I had a feeling that they were the same...species. He seemed like he was eighteen or nineteen, but was he, really? I decided that I needed to find out. And I need to get Elaina to stop messing with my head.

I got out of the lake and ran back to the camp. I saw that Elaina was up and eating some eggs, although she didn't look like she was enjoying them, at all. Okay that was confusing. First blood, now eggs? If I was going to get a clear answer I needed to talk to Austin. I walked up to him.

" Austin, I need to ask you something in private." I said. He glared at me and said,

" You can ask me here."

" Bella you can-" Elaina started to say but I spoke over her.

" Don't play you're mind games with me." I said as I childishly put my hands over my ears. She grabbed one hand and I could feel the fog wrapping around my brain. I tried to yank it away but she had a tight grip, a strong grip that was surely supernatural. I tried to use my other hand to help but she grabbed that one too. She looked at me with those wide gold eyes and I felt myself relax, and all the panic drained from my body. There was no reason to fight, I'm just playing a silly game and now it's time to be serious.

" Bella, I'm not going to hurt you. And you don't need to ask us anything, we have no secrets from you. But I think you shouldn't go off on your own. It messes up your head." I felt myself agreeing with her.

" Now what were you going to ask? So we can remind of what you've forgotten." I thought back to a couple of seconds ago to when I was being ridiculous and childish.

" I was going to ask you what you are." I finally said. She laughed and the sound was so deliciously happy and beautiful that it made me smile.

" Ah Bella, you already know what we are." she said and then I remembered. Of course I knew what they were. They were my family and they're just like me. But they are in disguise. I gave her a hug.

" I'm sorry, I don't know what came over me." I said. She pulled away but still held my hands.

" I understand. We all have our crazy moments." she said sweetly. She pulled me over to a tree and sat down. She patted the ground next to her and I sat down too.

" Now I have some questions about you." I shrugged my shoulders and then said,

" Ask away." She smiled.

" Why did your vampire friends leave you?" That question brought such pain that it snapped my head out that heavy blanket of fog like even the lake couldn't have. I growled at her remembering everything and I leaped for her throat. Something hit me mid-air and I slammed into a tree about five meters back. My attacker was on top of me. I looked up into the face of Austin, face murderously enraged. I closed my eyes, waiting for the second bite to my throat in my life, but this time for the one that would end it.


End file.
